The present invention relates to the art of power driven threading machines and, more particularly, to an improved reaming tool and tool carriage mounting arrangement therefor.
In connection with power driven threading machines of the type operable to perform workpiece cutting, reaming and threading operations, it is of course well known to support the tools for such operations on a tooling carriage which is supported by carriage rails for axial displacement relative to the workpiece. The tools are sequentially arranged axially of the carriage, and each of the tools is mounted on the carriage for pivotal movement about a corresponding axis which is laterally spaced from and parallel to the machine or workpiece axis, such pivotal support facilitating the displacement of each of the tools between use and storage positions therefor. Each tool in the use position thereof is positionally associated with a workpiece to perfrom the corresponding tool function, and each tool in the storage position thereof is supported laterally outwardly adjacent the tooling carriage in a manner which enables each of the tools to be displaced between its use and storage positions without physical interference with the others.
Reaming tools heretofore provided on the tooling carriage of power driven threading machines are undesirably large, heavy and expensive to manufacture and, most importantly, are cumbersome to manipulate in connection with displacements of the tool between the use and storage positions thereof. More particularly, such reaming tools heretofore provided have included a yoke-like component which, when in the use position, has a central portion offset axially away from a workpiece to be machined. The reaming blade is mounted on one end of a square post which is axially slidably supported by the central portion of the yoke for displacement between a use position in which the remaining blade is disposed forwardly of the yoke towards the workpiece, and a position in which the blade is axially received in the recessed central portion. The yoke is pivotally mounted on one side of the carriage, and the storage position for the reaming tool is that in which the reaming blade is positioned in the yoke recess and the yoke is pivoted to a position laterally outwardly adjacent the carriage. Therefore, and as will become more apparent hereinafter, displacement of the reaming tool between the use and storage positions thereof requires multiple manual manipulations of the component parts which is cumbersome and time consuming. Moreover, the necessity for displacing the reaming blade forwardly of the yoke to achieve reaming of a workpiece results in considerable torsional loading of the stem and yoke, whereby these component parts have to be undesirably large and heavy in order to resist such load forces.